Hummingbird Meditation

Saturday, September 14th, 2013 at
4:53 pm

Hummingbird Meditation

As we were watching the Hummingbirds in our back yard the other day, we found this little guy and at first we thought he might be sick. After a little bit of research and collaberation with some other Hummingbird enthusiasts, we learned that he was not likely ill but was preparing for his upcoming journey.

I joke about him meditating but in a sense that is exactly what he is doing.

Torpor – aka “Hummingbird Meditation”

It appears that this little guy is actually in Torpor. This is a state of hibernation or lethargy that allows the animal to conserve energy. He is in the process of feeding and fueling for a trip of several thousand miles and it makes sense that he might want to conserve energy.

This state of torpor allows the bird to conserve energy as he prepares for his upcoming journey. In this state we were able to touch the bird and he just sat there. At first we thought he was injured but then he would fly away and then return to feed again.

During this time of year most of the hummingbirds are busy feeding and fueling and very active as you can see in this video. The little bird above is the first one that we have every seen using Torpor in his preparation to migrate.

I hope you enjoyed this information. If so, please feel free to share it with your friends.